States › New Mexico › Lea County
County · New Mexico · FIPS 35025
Federal spending in Lea County, NM
USAspending caveat. Figures are obligations reported by federal agencies to USAspending.gov, not payments. In USAspending's words: "An outlay occurs when federal money is actually paid out, not just promised to be paid ('obligated')." "Every agency has a Senior Accountable Official who must officially certify that the quarterly financial data submitted by their agency is accurate and complete." "If there are any discrepancies in procurement data, FPDS is the authoritative source." Contract data for the Department of Defense and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is published with a 90-day delay. Data loaded 30 Sep 2026.
In FY2026, $308M in federal awards named Lea County, New Mexico, as the primary place of performance, $4,127 per resident.
That is below the New Mexico rate of $20,891 per resident (20% of it) and below the national rate of $14,744; it ranks 33 of 33 counties in the state.
The FY2026 mix was 83% direct payments, 16% grants.
Obligations were about level on FY2025, and the five-year total since FY2023 is $1.2B.
Over FY2022–FY2025, the largest awarding agencies were Social Security Administration ($848M), Department of Transportation ($92M) and Department of Agriculture ($76M).
Per resident, by award type FY2026
- Contracts $974K
- Grants $51M
- Direct payments $257M
- Loans (subsidy cost) $43K
- Other assistance $326K
| Per resident | This county | New Mexico | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| All award obligations | $4,127 | $20,891 | $14,744 |
| Contracts | $13 | $7,340 | $2,007 |
| Grants | $677 | $6,511 | $3,528 |
| Direct payments | $3,432 | $6,991 | $9,185 |
| Loans (subsidy cost) | $1 | $0 | −$16 |
| Other assistance | $4 | $48 | $40 |
| Rank by per-resident rate | 33 of 33 in state · 3,105 of 3,144 US | 11 of 51 states | — |
Direct payments include Social Security, Medicare and similar benefit records that USAspending attributes to a county; Medicare payments are attributed to the county of the administrative contractor, which can lift or lower a county's rate a great deal. Loans count the subsidy cost, not the face value.
Obligations by fiscal year
Who funds the county FY2022–FY2025
Awarding agencies
Assistance programs
Contract industries by NAICS sector
Cross-tabulations cover the four closed fiscal years FY2022–FY2025 (the 24 largest agencies, 40 largest listings and all NAICS sectors), fetched 18 Sep 2026.
Recipients with the largest awards performed here $1.0M+ awards since FY2023
| # | Recipient organisation | Awards | Award value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Mexico Department of Transportation | 10 | $78M | 57% |
| 2 | Leaco Rural Telephone Coop Inc | 3 | $26M | 19% |
| 3 | County of Lea | 5 | $11M | 8% |
| 4 | Child and Family Services Inc, of Lea County | 1 | $9.4M | 7% |
| 5 | City of Jal | 1 | $9.2M | 7% |
A further $2.3M went to recipients not shown: individuals, aggregated records and names USAspending withholds.
Largest awards performed in the county
Congressional districts
| District | Share of county land area | District FY2026 obligations | Per resident |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Mexico's 3rd congressional district | 53% | $12B | $17,023 |
| New Mexico's 2nd congressional district | 47% | $5.9B | $8,350 |
Other counties in New Mexico
- Bernalillo County $17,297
- Los Alamos County $291,638
- Santa Fe County $15,477
- Doña Ana County $8,219
- Hidalgo County $469,732
- Sandoval County $8,370
- San Juan County $9,823
- Otero County $9,825
- McKinley County $8,315
- Valencia County $6,233
- Chaves County $7,251
- Eddy County $7,106
- Grant County $13,384
- Lincoln County $18,221
- Curry County $7,265
- Socorro County $21,174
- Rio Arriba County $8,195
- Taos County $9,032
- Cibola County $8,275
- San Miguel County $7,721
- Luna County $6,247
- Sierra County $13,208
- Torrance County $8,014
- Quay County $14,085
- Roosevelt County $6,157
- Colfax County $9,159
- Catron County $15,534
- Mora County $12,184
- Guadalupe County $11,292
- Union County $7,933
- De Baca County $9,915
- Harding County $6,236
Per-resident rate, FY2026. All counties in New Mexico.
Questions and answers
How much federal spending goes to Lea County, New Mexico?
$308M in award obligations in FY2026 and $1.2B since FY2023, counting awards whose primary place of performance is in the county. Obligations are commitments, not payments.
How much federal spending per person is that?
$4,127 per resident in FY2026 (population 74,749), against $20,891 for New Mexico and $14,744 nationally. Direct payments such as Social Security and Medicare are included; the table on this page splits the rate by award type.
Which recipients dominate Lea County, New Mexico?
By the value of $1.0M-plus awards begun since FY2023: New Mexico Department of Transportation ($78M), Leaco Rural Telephone Coop Inc ($26M), County of Lea ($11M), Child and Family Services Inc, of Lea County ($9.4M) and City of Jal ($9.2M). Individuals are never listed.
Which agencies fund Lea County, New Mexico?
Social Security Administration ($848M), Department of Transportation ($92M), Department of Agriculture ($76M), Department of Veterans Affairs ($72M) and Department of Education ($19M), over FY2022–FY2025.
What does "place of performance" mean here?
USAspending records where the work is done or the payment is directed, as reported by the awarding agency. Some awards, especially grants to state governments, carry only a state-level location and are not attributed to any county or district; Medicare payments are attributed to the county of the administrative contractor.
Provenance
Source: USAspending.gov API v2, spending-by-geography (place of performance, county layer) by fiscal year and award type, loaded 30 Sep 2026; award lists from the award search endpoint; cross-tabulations for FY2022–FY2025. Population: U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2025 county estimates (USAspending's population figure where the Census file has none, as for Connecticut's former counties). Boundaries: Census cartographic boundary files (1:20m). Errors in processing are corrected at the next build; see corrections.